Since Johnson & Johnson’s first mass-marketing in 1948, disposable diaper has become a daily essential to babies and their parents. It was a great modern invention that saved young parents the pain and mess in dealing with soiled cloth diapers. In recent years, however, cloth diapers are making a come back as more and more people want to live a lifestyle that is environmentally conscious.

Today we would like to take a closer look at the pros and cons of both options, and hopefully help you make an informed choice.

Cost

If a baby goes through 6 diapers per day until being potty trained at 2.5 years, he or she would have uses 5, 475 diapers by then. The actual number in each case may vary quite a bit, but however you look at it, all these diapers mount to a big cost, plus the wipes you will need to purchase along side.

While the initial investment for cloth diapers is significantly higher, as you need to buy dozens of covers, inserts and wipes, when you even the number out over the 2-3 year period of time, the cost becomes lower even when you factor in electricity, water and detergent used for washing.

For more accurate calculation check out this blog:

http://greenactioncentre.ca/green-your-routine/the-cost-of-diapering-cloth-vs-disposable/

So where money is concerns, cloth diaper wins hands down.

Baby’s Health

As much as companies try to make disposable diapers safe for babies, there are certain chemicals that are unavoidable in the making disposable diapers. For example, Sodium Polyacrylate (SAP) is a super absorbent polymer that can trap water 300 times its weight and essential to a functional disposable diaper. It is derived from petroleum and its respirable dust may irritate the respiratory tract. In the process of bleaching cotton and wood, Dioxin is created as a byproduct and may be found on disposable diapers. It is very toxic and may cause liver problems, impairment of the immune system and certain type of cancers.

Cloth diapers manufactured responsibly can save you the worries. Make sure to buy the ones made of unbleached and dye-free cotton or bamboo.

Environmental Impact

In North America, disposable diapers can contribute to over 2% of municipal waste. It will take 500 years for these diapers to fully degrade, while they take up space in landfills and pose as a health and environmental hazard.

In comparison, cloth diapers are fully biodegradable; water consumed for washing is also a renewable resource.

Concerns and Perks

One big reason for parents to resolve to disposable diapers is the fear of being in constant contact with poop. With some practice, frequent change and planning ahead with your laundry cycle, it is possible to avoid most of the mess. For more information and suggestions, this is one super comprehensive blog that can help you with all aspects of cloth diaper http://www.babygearlab.com/Cloth-Diaper-Reviews/Buying-Advice

A great things of cloth diaper is that they come in so many designs and styles. Your baby can wear them comfortably as a fashion statement, while you can feel better for acting responsibly for the environment.

Cloth Diaper, Diaper Rash and Baby Butz

Whichever diaper you decide to go with, diaper rash is something you are likely to encounter down the road. Most diaper-friendly rash creams are full of oil. They work by creating a lubricating layer on your baby’s bum that prevents further chafing. This allows undisturbed time for the skin to heal. Baby Butz’s formula doesn’t just protect your baby’s skin from further irritation, its high Zinc Oxide content actually heals skin, so instead of waiting for 4-5 days for your baby’s rash to naturally heal (while the baby is in pain), you can shorten the time considerably by apply Zinc Oxide cream such as Baby Butz. However, Zinc Oxide does matt the fibre of cloth diapers, which would slow down the diaper’s absorption. In this case, we recommend adding a liner to the cloth diaper or switch to disposable diapers until your baby’s rash is fully healed.

To read more about cloth diaper

Mother Jones, “A brief history of the disposable diaper”, available at <http://www.motherjones.com/environment/2008/04/brief-history-disposable-diaper>, accessed on Jan 25 2017

Babycenter, “Cloth versus disposable: The diaper facts”, available at <http://www.babycenter.ca/a25006071/cloth-versus-disposable-the-diaper-facts>, accessed on Jan 25 2017

Images

Janko Ferlic, https://unsplash.com/search/diaper?photo=EpbIXGCrtK0